Our god-son is purchasing a house that has just been built in Southville with a mortgage from . His lawyer has said that there is a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. Who needs to receive the form?

The document is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

I am buying a new build flat in Southville. How practical is it for me to do the conveyancing?

Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing in Southville you will have to appoint a solicitor on your bank's conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to be made in you doing conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on your lender panel in Southville.

When it comes to mortgage companies such as , do Southville incur an annual charge to be on the conveyancing panel?

We are unaware of any bank fees to be on their panel, although some do charge an administration fee to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.

I am expecting a AIP from this week so we can work out what to offer on a property we like as otherwise we only have online calculators to go by (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do recommend any Southville solicitors on the conveyancing panel, or is it better to find our own lawyer?

You will need to appoint Southville solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and through the process.

I currently have a mortgage with for my property in Southville. Conveyancing was finalised 12 months ago. Should I wish to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform ?

You must advise before renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of ’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact directly. You need not do this via a conveyancing panel solicitor.

I am buying my first flat in Southville benefiting from help to buy. The developers would not budge the amount so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The house builders rep advised me not inform my solicitor about the extras as it may impact my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

My cousin has suggested that I use his conveyancing solicitors in Southville. Should I use them?

No doubt the ideal way to select a conveyancing solicitor is to seek recommendations from friends or family who have previously instructed the firm that you are are thinking of instructing.